Happy Thanksgiving Everyone

Wishing a Safe and Happy Thanksgiving to Everyone in the Diabetes Online Community!

May we all take time today to remember what this day is all about;
Giving thanks for all of the blessings that come to us.

Today, as with each day, I am thankful to be alive, I am thankful for my family and friends, and I am thankful for the good memories of those who are no longer here to share in this day.

I’m thankful to have been able to spend more time with my family in Louisville this year.  My schedule and the distance make it difficult to get down there at times.  And, if I’m being honest, issues with my health over the last six years, as well as the death of my aunt and health challenges of other family member, has enforced in my mind the importance of spending as much time with family and friends as possible.  Life is fragile.  And life is short.

I’m thankful that I was able to be in Louisville for a few days this week to visit my grandmother who fell and broke her hip last week.  I’m thankful that her hip replacement surgery went well, and that I was able to see her up and walking some before I had to return to Fort Wayne on Tuesday night.  I’m thankful my mother is there to make sure she receives the care she needs.

I’m thankful that the automobile accident that I was in on Tuesday evening wasn’t as bad as it could have been, and that my mother and I walked away relatively unharmed.

I’m quite thankful for the financial blessings bestowed upon me this year that have allowed me to pay off all of my college debts.  I’m equally thankful to have been able to pay off the majority of the outstanding medical debts I’ve incurred in nearly six years of fighting congestive heart failure.   I haven’t the words to express the sense of relief that I feel now that those debts are gone.   I’ll never be able to adequately thank the two angels who made it possible.

I’m thankful that I’ve been able to make progress toward getting out of the burnout and depression that I’ve been struggling with for the last several months.  I’m thankful that I recognized and accepted my need to step away and focus on my well being.  I’ve got a long road ahead of me.  I’m thankful for the many friends that I have in diabetes online community, and for the continued love and support they’ve shown in my darkest of times.

And last, but certainly not least, I’m most thankful to have someone as caring and loving as April with whom to share this journey through life.  We’ve been through so much together in the last 12 years, and I wouldn’t be alive today if it weren’t for her.  And, thankfully, I will end my Thanksgiving Day with her back in my arms as she returns from California this evening.

Happy Thanksgiving and lots of love, my friends!